A network of overseas-operated social media accounts is behind a growing wave of AI-generated anti-immigration content targeting UK audiences, according to a BBC investigation.
Among the most prominent examples is the Facebook page “Great British People”, which presents itself as a Yorkshire-based platform promoting traditional British values. One of its latest videos, an AI-generated clip showing an elderly white British man in tears over his pension despite having “paid in for decades” has attracted more than 1.3 million views.
Other widely shared posts feature fictional reporters warning about “the overwhelming scale of mass immigration” and asking viewers whether they miss “the Britain we used to know”. However, the BBC found the account is actually operated from Sri Lanka.
The investigation, conducted by BBC Panorama in collaboration with the Top Comment podcast, identified dozens of interconnected Facebook and Instagram accounts producing AI-generated anti-immigration content about Britain while being managed from countries including Sri Lanka, Vietnam, the Maldives, the United States and several parts of Europe.
Some accounts were also linked to Iran and the United Arab Emirates through Meta transparency tools and social media activity. Researchers found that many of the accounts had been repurposed from unrelated themes, including pro-MAGA pages and lifestyle accounts focused on the United States, before shifting toward politically charged immigration narratives designed to drive engagement and online traffic.
Several videos portray a dystopian vision of Britain’s future. AI-generated scenes depict London, Birmingham and Liverpool in 2050 as overcrowded, chaotic and heavily Islamized, with rubbish-filled streets, fires, market stalls labelled “Halal”, and groups dressed in traditional Islamic clothing.
Some fabricated clips even show the House of Commons populated by men in Arab attire allegedly imposing Sharia law. Experts warn that such content is becoming increasingly difficult for the public to identify as fake.
Sander van der Linden described the phenomenon as a “new evolution of influence operations”, noting that foreign operators can cheaply purchase UK-based social media accounts and easily present themselves as British users online.
Meanwhile, Yvonne McDermott Rees said research indicates people are significantly less effective at detecting AI-generated misinformation than they believe. She warned that repeated exposure to fabricated content could gradually undermine public trust in authentic information.
Sadiq Khan said research commissioned by City Hall had identified a sharp increase in AI-generated content portraying London as dangerous or in decline. While some creators appear motivated by advertising revenue and engagement, he suggested others may be linked to hostile state-backed influence campaigns.
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, said it takes “coordinated inauthentic behavior seriously” and would act against any accounts or content found to violate its policies, regardless of whether the material was AI-generated.
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